Man threatens to take dept to court

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Wednesday 22nd August 2012

By YVONNE HAIP
A FATHER in Western Highlands, whose son was shot at by a policeman, has threatened to take legal action against the police department if the police hierarchy fails to deal with the officer responsible.
Jack Lome, a prominent and long-time resident of Mt Hagen, has also called on the police hierarchy to “weed out rogue officers in the police department who are staining the image of the department”.
Lome’s son, Roy, an information technology officer with Bank South Pacific, was driving home to Gerehu in Port Moresby, when a policeman allegedly shot him in the foot during the early hours of Aug 10.
Roy was reportedly taken out of the car by the off-duty policeman, reportedly stationed at the Gerehu police station, pointed a gun to his head and chest before firing a shot at his feet.
Roy only lost his right toe thanks to the boots he was wearing at the time.
Lome, who is also the general superintendent of the Apostolic church of PNG, said the reason behind the attack on his son was unknown.
“As Roy’s father, condemn the unprofessional, uncivilised and criminal behavior of the police officer who shot Roy Lome’s foot.”
Lome said police had taken oaths to serve the government and protect lives and public properties but often had acted contrary to their oaths.
“If Roy has broken any traffic rules or law, police, as the custodian of law, should have charged him and brought the matter to court,” he said.
“It is unprofessional on the part of the police officer to take the law into his own hands and punish Roy himself when he would have left the courts to do their job.”
Lome said the officer had used a state-issued gun to shoot Roy who was unarmed, adding that it was a “cowardly act and criminal offence.”
Lome wants to challenge the matter in court and it is not his first time for him to do so as he had once taken the police department to court for failing to punish criminals who endangered the lives of one of his children.